Olive Garden Minestrone Soup is a cozy copycat recipe loaded with veggies, beans, and pasta in a rich tomato broth. Ready in 30 minutes, on the stove, slow cooker, or Instant Pot.

I love soup for lunch.  As soon as the weather starts to cool off I could eat soup every day of the week!  But I do get bored easily and like to mix it up.  Chicken Wild Rice Soup is one of my all time favorites and always will be.  

 

I love going to Olive Garden for their soup lunch. You can mix and match soups and try more than one, which is perfect!  I already have a Chicken Gnocchi Soup recipe and the Zuppa Toscana from them on here as well, that is how much I like it!  

This Olive Garden minestrone soup recipe is so easy to make, you can do it even on busy weeknights. You have to chop a couple things, but mainly it is open cans and dump. You could even chop the veggies the night before and have them ready and waiting for you. And the added bonus is this is a vegan soup. Not purposefully made that way, just by chance! So Meatless Monday here we come!

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Olive Oil: Any cooking oil works if that’s what you have on hand.
• Onion, Celery, Carrots: This trio is the classic soup base (a mirepoix). Dice them small and similar in size so they cook evenly.
• Zucchini: Yellow squash works as a swap if that’s what you have.
• Garlic:
• Tomato Paste: Concentrated tomato flavor that deepens and thickens the broth. Look for it in a small can or tube near the canned tomatoes.
• Diced Tomatoes: Adds body and acidity to balance the richness of the broth. Fire-roasted diced tomatoes are a nice swap for extra depth.
• Vegetable Broth: Keeps the soup vegetarian. Chicken broth works too if you don’t need to keep it meat-free, and either can be low-sodium if you’d rather control the salt yourself.
• White Beans & Kidney Beans: Cannellini or great northern beans both work for the white beans. Always drain and rinse canned beans before adding them to the pot.
• Green Beans: Frozen cut green beans are the easiest option and go straight into the pot without thawing; fresh green beans work too.
• Italian Seasoning:
• Spinach: Stirred in at the end so it just wilts. Baby kale or chopped Swiss chard both work as a swap, though chard may need an extra minute or two to soften.
• Small Shell Pasta: Small shapes are easiest to scoop up in every bite. Ditalini, elbow macaroni, or small farfalle all work well in place of shells.
• Salt & Pepper

What Vegetables Go In Minestrone Soup

This version is loaded with onions, celery, carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, white beans, kidney beans and green beans.  This is what Olive Garden has in theirs, so that is what I used.  But you can really pick and choose and mix in whatever you like.  Here are more veggies that would be delicious as well. 

• Russet Potatoes
• Sweet Potatoes
• Butternut Squash
• Peas
• Shredded Cabbage
• Leeks

Olive Garden Minestrone Soup is super easy to make.  

1. Start by chopping onions, celery, carrots, and zucchini. 
2. Saute the veggies in a little oil until they are soft.  This only takes a couple of minutes. 
3. Next you add in the garlic and let that cook for just about a minute.  You want to be able to start to smell it, then you know it is time to add more ingredients. 
4. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste and vegetable broth and mix until everything is blended.
5. Once that is boiling, mix in the white beans, kidney beans, green beans, Italian seasoning, and the pasta.
6. During the last couple minutes you throw in the spinach to let it wilt it and then season with salt and pepper. 

Recipe Variations

Add Ground Beef or Sausage: Brown 1/2 to 1 pound of ground beef or Italian sausage in the pot before adding the onion, celery, carrots, and zucchini, then continue with the recipe as written. This is a great way to add extra protein if you don’t need to keep the soup vegetarian.

Slow Cooker Method: Add everything to the slow cooker except the pasta and spinach. Cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Stir in the pasta during the last 20-30 minutes of cooking so it doesn’t get mushy, then add the spinach at the very end so it just wilts.

Instant Pot Method: Use the saute function to cook the onion, celery, carrots, and zucchini, then add the garlic. Stir in the tomato paste, tomatoes, broth, beans, green beans, and Italian seasoning. Pressure cook on high for 5 minutes, then quick release. Turn the pot back to saute, stir in the pasta, and cook until al dente. Stir in the spinach and season with salt and pepper.

Recipe Tips & Tricks

• Cutting the vegetables to a similar size helps everything to cook evenly.
• You can use fresh or frozen green beans, they both work well. Just drain the liquid from canned beans if you use those.
• Be sure to drain and rinse the beans before adding to the soup. You can mix up the beans to use whatever you have or like as well.
• Browned ground beef or Italian sausage is a great addition if you want to add more protein and don’t need to keep it vegetarian.
• This soup freezes really well. Just let it cool before placing in an air tight container to freeze. Thaw in the fridge before reheating.
• Other shapes of pasta work great as well. Ditalini, small shells, and macaroni are my favorite. But rotini or penne work great as well.
• Top with Parmesan cheese if you aren’t concerned about the soup being vegan.

Storage

This is one of those soups that just gets better with age. But you want to be a little careful with the pasta. It will soak up a lot of the liquid and get mushy as it sits. So if I know we aren’t going to eat it all at once, I will cook the pasta separately and just add it to our bowls.

Fridge: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.

Freezer: This soup freezes really well. Store in an airtight container for 4-5 months. Let it thaw in the fridge, then reheat on the stove. You can add in cooked pasta as you reheat, or boil the pasta in the soup to cook it fresh.

More Soups You will Love:

• Wonton Soup – Ready in under 15 minutes!
• Taco Soup – Great for taco night!
• Broccoli Cheese Soup – Cheese and delicious!
• Crock Pot Potato Soup – top with cheese, bacon, and more!
• Spaghetti & Meatball Soup – pasta night in a whole new way!
• Beef Barley Soup – great for the crock pot

And what goes perfectly with soup?  Soft Breadsticks!